Approximately one in ten people admitted to hospitals in the United States acquires a new infection during their stay. These nosocomial infections result in an estimated 100,000 deaths per year in the United States. Nosocomial infections increase the length of patient stays in hospital, contributing to increased healthcare staffing levels, increased costs and increased use of resources. This situation contributes significantly to the overall stress on the healthcare systems and increases wait times. It is estimated that approximately half of these nosocomial infections are the result of inadequate hand hygiene (HH) compliance by healthcare staff.
There is considerable evidence that hand hygiene compliance is a primary means to reduce nosocomial infections and the transmission of pathogens. Pathogens are normally present on the skin of healthcare workers and patients and on surfaces surrounding the patient. These organisms can be transferred to healthcare workers' hands where they can survive for periods ranging from minutes to hours. The final step in the transmission process is the transfer of organisms front the contaminated hands of the caregiver to other patients or clean environmental surfaces. Alcohol-based hand rubs seem to be significantly more effective than washing with soap and water in the reduction of transmission of pathogens for most pathogens. However, washing with soap and water is still sometimes a better alternative when the hands are soiled and with certain pathogens.
Unfortunately, published studies have generally found that compliance with hand hygiene requirements by healthcare workers averages about 40%. Various traditional educational and management interventions can increase awareness and improve this in the short term but generally do not provide sustainable improvements.
While some systems have been proposed to track and encourage hand hygiene compliance with prescribed protocols, commercially viable options remain costly not only in the acquisition of required system hardware, but also in the installation, maintenance and operation of the system once installed.
This background information is provided to reveal information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the invention. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the invention.